No: 370, 30 November 2017, Press Release Regarding The Judgment Of The European Court Of Human Rights On The Case Of “merçan And Others Vs. Switzerland”

Republic Of Turkey Ministry Of Foreign Affairs 30.11.2017

In its judgment of 28 November 2017 regarding the case of “Merçan and
others vs. Switzerland,” the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR)
unanimously ruled that the right of freedom of expression of our citizens
Ali Merçan, Hasan Kemahlı and Ethem Kayalı, who were convicted by
Switzerland due to their statements with regard to the events of 1915 on
grounds of “denial of genocide,” was violated.

We regard this judgment as a very strong decision based on democratic and
legal principles against all attempts and practices imposing the
allegations of “genocide” as if they were an absolute truth.

This judgment, following the ruling of the Grand Chamber of the ECtHR on
the case of “Perinçek v. Switzerland,” affirmed that different opinions
regarding the events of 1915 are under the protection of the freedom of
expression and that there exist historical and legal differences between
the events of 1915 and the Holocaust. Thus, our rightful position on the
events of 1915, which is based on strong legal grounds, has been confirmed
once again.